The Aquilian
October 2021 Volume 83 Number 1
Gonzaga College High School Men For Others Since 1821
19 Eye St, NW Washington, DC 20001
Celebrating 200 Years of Gonzaga By: Jackson Baldrate ‘23 Editor As Gonzaga celebrates its bicentennial, it is a good time to look back on the storied history of our school. In 1820, the House of Philosophy for Jesuit Scholastics was founded by the Society of Jesus. The institution was created to train young Jesuits. However, in the following months, people in the Washington area began asking the Jesuits if their sons could attend the school. Due to the large interest, Washington Seminary, as Gonzaga was originally called, opened its doors for lay people in 1821. Despite the fact that the school was thriving, Washington Seminary had to close
its doors in 1827. The school did not have any funding, and it could not charge tuition because doing so went against the rules of the Jesuits. However, the Jesuits returned to Washington Seminary in 1848 after the rules against tuition were changed. The school continued to thrive, and on May 4th 1858, President James Buchanan signed a charter creating the “Presidents and Directors of Gonzaga College,” an event that is celebrated annually on Charter Day. In 1859, the Jesuits built a church on North Capitol street and dedicated it to St. Aloysius Gonzaga. The painting above the altar was painted by Constantino Brumidi, who also painted some of the rotunda in the United
States Capitol. In 1871, Gonzaga left the center of D.C. to move to a building near St. Al’s church. At the time, the move was nearly disastrous. There were very few people living in the area, and the school nearly had to close due to low enrollment. However, as the surrounding area slowly developed, Gonzaga saw its applicants increase, and by the turn of the century, Gonzaga was back at full capacity. In 1926, the Gonzaga football team had its most dominant season in history. In the 1926 season, Gonzaga went a perfect 6-0 and their stifling defense allowed no opponent to score a point or cross the 50 yard line the entire season. In 1942, Joe Kozik, known as “The
Coach,” began his 50-year career at Gonzaga. While at Gonzaga, he taught history, biology, religion, and physical education and coached baseball, basketball, and football. Additionally, in 1951 he coached D.C.’s first integrated football team. In 1954, Gonzaga’s first African American student, Gabe Smith, graduated from the school. Despite these outstanding achievements in the early 20th century, Gonzaga went through one of its most difficult periods in the 1960s. During the city-wide riots in 1968 after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., fires surrounded Gonzaga’s campus. Thankfully, Gonzaga and St. Al’s survived. In the next 20 years, Gonzaga
Meet the President, 5
Walk 4 McKenna, 5
The Dingell Corner, 6
Halloween Power Rkngs, 8
expanded, and the Carmody Gym, McKenna Center, and Forte Hall opened to accommodate the new students. Since then, Gonzaga’s campus and student body has continued to grow and build on the celebrated history of Gonzaga. From a small seminary for Jesuit students, Gonzaga expanded to the general public while keeping its emphasis on an education built on faith. It has persisted through struggles and experienced great triumphs throughout its two hundred year history. In light of Gonzaga’s bicentennial, it is important to take some time to reflect on all of the events and people that shaped Gonzaga into the wonderful institution that it is today.